error Books

Lovejoy's gardening help and humor have been assembled over a long time as a gardener--in good times and bad. She knows bugs. She knows weeds. She understands my gardening pain. Her remedies for problems are safe and effective, and best of all, tend to be created out of stuff we all keep on hand. On a few gray, rainy days I have read her book simply for entertainment. Also, this book is a terrific gift. Enjoy!

From clever outdoor decorating ideas to eco-friendly pest repellent recipes, this little book is a wealth of simple tricks to transform your garden. The first time I read it, I couldn't put it down. Page after turned page, I found myself gasping "who knew?" or "genius!" Having only a light-green thumb myself, I especially enjoy Sharon Lovejoy's humorous and uncomplicated approach to a wide variety of gardening challenges. There probably isn't a whole lot of information in this book that would be news to the seasoned gardener. But for the beginner or the well-intentioned-albeit-lax like me, it is informative and delightful. My only complaint is that the book is not water/dirt repellent ... the amount of time this book has spent by my side in the garden SHOWS! :-)

He loves it so far, and I'm enjoying the bits I''m getting to read.

This is a great "sitting by the garden" book. I have learned a lot, and it has reinforced some things I thought I already knew. Lots of great ideas, and I love the organic ways to take care of gardens/pests/etc.

As an avid collector of gardening books, I am proud to add this to my library. It is a fun, quick read with no nonsense everyday tips and remedies for the novice to the experienced gardener. It is easily becoming my first reference when tackling the out-of-doors, and it is small enough to tote around the yard as I work. No more "rummaging thru" pages of information. Everything is at my fingertips. THANK YOU Sharon !!

I found this to be a very difficult book to read; perhaps because my views are different from those portrayed in the book. I did finish it and passed it on to a friend who said she could not finish the book and decided not to pass it further. Some people may identify with the author, but I was not one of them and neither was my friend.

Deeply moving, thought-provoking, and very moving. This novel has taught me different ways to view myself, as well as my life and my God. Wow...

Gabriel Black was sentenced to life in prison. He has all the time in the world to sit and think about things that the common person just overlooks or takes advantage of. He decided to search for God in prison. Each chapter is titled with what he believes is proof that God excists.

The one thing I loved about this book was how deep thoughts he was. I had to keep underlining stuff in the book that I really liked a lot. Really made you think a lot.

This is one of those books that I wish I wrote.

In THE PAINS OF APRIL, Frank Hollon insinuated himself into the mind of a man many years his senior and expressed thoughts, ideas, feelings and recollections that would seem to me to be collectively accumulated during a lifetime and, therefore, unavailable to a man as young as Hollon when he write his first novel.
In his most recent novel, THE GOD FILE, he has once again placed himself in the mind of a person whose experiences would appear to be profoundly foreign to his own and, once again, he provides a keenly focused, sensitive journey through the mind of Gabriel Black, a prisoner, who has self-imposed a search to chronicle events that reflect the existence of God. Hollon provides many varied thought-provoking instances in which the reader is challenged to consider his/her own views of the existence of God (and other philosophical questions) -- and, indeed they are powerful, substantive situations. I found myself at times absorbed in his descriptions of the inner-workings of the minds of the players; the who, what, when and where of the events, only to be intensely reminded by Gabriel Black at the end of each scenario of the WHY he started his file. This is a wonderful book.

Gabriel Black is the instrument of his own punishment, a young man who has taken the murder of his girlfriend's husband on his own shoulders, accepting the blame for a crime he has not committed. When his girlfriend, the only other witness, makes no effort in his defense, Gabriel is left alone behind prison bars. In this vast wasteland of personal pain and the struggle to account for a misspent life, he begins a lifelong search for deliverance.

Sentenced to life without parole, Black sets himself the task of finding God in the lowest of places, where the dregs of humanity endure endless days of mind-numbing boredom with only their twisted memories for company. Some spend the years reading, learning about a world they barely remember and may never see again, while others escape into monotonous drug-induced sleep or give free reign to the demons that have brought them to this place.

Walking a landscape of despair, Hollon treads familiar territory as his protagonist gathers the contents of the box that will define his life, piece by piece, assimilating The God File. There are soulful letters, mournful essays, remembrances of things past, questions about this terrible struggle, all arranged in a particular order of importance. All attempt to explain the inexplicable, to find a place where belief can coexist with despair.

Gabriel's quest is intensely spiritual; the years he spends gathering this ambiguous evidence are part of his evolution toward the answer he so desperately craves. It would be impossible for Gabriel to find God when he first comes into prison. He hasn't achieved the maturity to save himself, let alone determine the existence of God. Each particle of thought scribbled on a scrap of paper in The God File is necessary to the whole. Gabriel has been baptized Catholic and his journey is littered with the small rituals, pieties and beliefs that are wedged so deep in the soul they almost cease to exist, until they are needed. Then, in the never-quiet, never-quite-dark, they emerge, tiny hopeful prayers, begging for a response. From God.

For Gabriel to find an answer to his question and know peace, he must be willing to endure each step of the agonizing journey. After all the wasted years, all the unspoken entreaties, Gabriel must experience patience. He has nowhere else to go. It is his journey alone and his personal path is intimately marked by the struggles of his individual soul. Yet Gabriel finds the courage to make each fragile leap of faith, to surrender his haunting question: "If God gives me more than I can endure, how can I know?" Gabriel listens to the faint sound in the chambers of his tortured mind, hoping to understand. Perhaps, after all, he will find peace of mind. Luan Gaines/2003.

This incredibly valuable book is characterized by almost reckless honesty in combination with a concern for the welfare of patients that I have encountered nowhere else to date.

If it is read casually, there is much of critical value; if studied carefully, there is even more.

Dr. Levine had earned the gratitude of everyone who reads the book as well as all others because, with his trail blazing book, he has put the medical establishment on notice that they can no longer depend on the code of silence that has for so long protected inadequate and impaired heath care professionals. And it's high time.

I agree with all the reviews here - this is a must read. But after you read it go give it to a friend - it could save their life. As for the one review from the Texas man....probably a criminal doctor or someone who works for the pharmaceutical companies!

Ask the nurses who the good doctors are? Nurses like the doctors that are nice to them. The best doctors aren't always nice.

Go to a Teaching hospital if you can? So a resident can do your procedure and round on you? I think not.

Drug companies are out to rip us all off? Dr. Levine doesn't like drug companies because drugs like statins and ace inhibitors decrease his business.

Asked to be transferred during your care? So a new doctor that hasn't been following you can start all over.

Tell the ER doctor to call your Primary care doctor? So he can get whoever is on call for the group and knows nothing about you. Right. Lots of help.

Really weird stuff to come from an MD.

I can't express how important I believe this book to be. I am a business consultant of more than 30 years. I have read extensively in many areas of business - and in Health, Wealth, Happiness, and Success. I'm not a doctor. I'm not sure there isn't some exaggeration here. But, both Dr. Levine and what he says "feels" right. And, even if it isn't, it is a wonderful checklist of things to watch our for and check against. I plan to purchase additional copies for members of my family. I plan to recommend this book to those who attend my seminars.

I was shocked to learn that drug companies and medical suppliers "court" and "pay" (my quotes) doctors to use their products.

The author explains the process behind the FDA approving a drug and that some doctors have a conflict of interest while taking part in the approval process.

Great book - see his site at http://wwww.brianpowerwaters.com.

I thoroughly enjoyed Margin for Error: None, and I thank you for every chapter. There are a lot of men and women controllers out there that feel the same way I do about people like you. Thanks again. Gary Lashbrock, Miami Tower.

Margin for Error: None outlines his views on the nation's air traffic control system. Included were such chapters as "Danger, FAA at Work" and "Controllers Mate It Work." Baltimore Sun

Captain Power-Waters "tells it like it is" through the use of many examples. Unfortunately, those who should read this book-FAA officials-probably won't. C.W. Glines (author of numerous books on aviation) in Airline Pilot Magazine.

This book was published in 1980, and then again in 2001 but not updated. All material is at least 23 years old.

Read the Innocent Man and thought I could never be moved so much by a book-really a life story. Saw the movie The Exonerated and heard about Kerry's life. I started reading the book for about 2 hrs a few nights ago... Last night I actually read from 9 pm to 3 am and then got up snowy day here) and read from 8 am finishing the book. I felt I couldn't put the book down until this whole ordeal was over-like my not finishing it still had held him in a deplorable state on Death Rown. When he is handed his belongings and the 1.28 check from his Trust Fund I bawled like a baby. I never really thought this was a just world but never really considered how injust men could be. Amazing life story of a man overcoming and rising above horrendous acts of injustice!
A Must Read!

A first-hand account of how and why innocent men and women can spend decades on death row in the United States that should be read and discussed by both pro-death penalty proponents as well as abolitionists.
Kerry Max Cook is a modern Dante/ Job. His story is of one who travels to hell and back, physically, spiritually, and emotionally, but who in the end has the strength to emerge as an enlightened, if wounded human being. The tortures he endures after being wrongfully convicted of the rape and murder of a young woman he only knew casually are simply inconceivable. Not only does he have to contend with the fear of losing his life on a daily basis, (the fear of execution, and the fear of being stabbed) but he also must survive psychologically the tragic deaths of loved ones in the outside world while he is in prison.
The depth of police and prosecutorial misconduct Kerry describes is nothing less than infuriating, shocking. Yet, the presentation of his case is not intended to be an ideological rant against "the system." Merely by stating the facts, Kerry can convince us of the depth of the flaws.
Besides being an eye-opening account into injustice, Kerry's book is also
told in a way that draws us close to him, a human tale that cuts deeply into our hearts. It is a face-paced read that will keep you turning the pages, one that will haunt you and make you want to live each day of your own freedom to the fullest.

Kerry Cook had a few scrapes with law enforcement as a teenager in a small Texas town - joyriding, kicking out the windows of a store that falsely accused him of armed robbery. Thus, police "knew" they had their man when his fingerprints were found at the scene of a grisly murder.

The abuse of justice started immediately, continued for two decades, and nearly ended with Cook's execution. First it was merely physical - police slamming him into a wall, holding his head underwater in a toilet, arranged beatings by fellow prisoners, refusing showers and clothing, and sleep deprivation to force Kerry to confess. More serious abuses then occurred - withholding evidence from Kerry's attorneys, coaching witnesses to slant/fabricate testimony against Kerry, providing scientifically unfounded testimony that "aged" Kerry's prints to the time of murder, solicited false testimony from fellow inmates that Kerry had confessed - culminating to Kerry's arrival on Death Row in 1978. There Kerry was raped three times, and attempted suicide after each. Then his appeal stalled for eight years, and ultimately was denied.

Finally, things started to go Kerry's way. The prisoner who initially testified Kerry confessed, decided to come clean. An FBI expert provided an affidavit stating that scientific fingerprint "aging" was not possible, information was uncovered that a pathologist had told police that the victim's librarian prior boyfriend had ordered a book describing how she had been mutilated (police ignored, and did not provide to Kerry's defense), the major Dallas newspaper printed a major expose of how Kerry had been railroaded, a foundation funded Kerry's successful re-appeal.

The judge in the retrial, however, prohibited introducing most of this new evidence, the foundation funding Kerry's defense ran out of money (his attorney worked pro bono, but could not afford expert witnesses), and after a mistrial (deadlocked jury) and third trial it was back to Death Row for Kerry.

Fortunately, this conviction was reversed again, and Kerry was offered a "No Contest" plea in exchange for time served. His initial decision was to refuse and go back to trial - however, Kerry accepted the deal after learning that the potential jurors generally thought he had gotten out on a technicality and that they were there to "make it right." Finally, after being freed, results of a DNA test came back, exonerating Kerry and pinning the crime on the librarian originally identified by an eyewitness who had been coerced by prosecutors to change her testimony. Yet, prosecutors continued to contest his exoneration when interviewed.

Kerry, however, is not blameless in this miscarriage. Throughout the trials he lied about how his fingerprints got on the victim's door, instead of simply admitting she had invited him up there. (Kerry claims his father told him not to admit this; however, such an action makes no sense whatsoever.) Finally, while Kerry also should be commended for writing the book himself, continually referring to his parents as "momma" and "daddy" was both infantile and aggravating.

Bottom Line: This book seriously questions the wisdom of the death penalty in America.

I have read the book twice. This is a first hand account of one of the worst cases of injustice in American History. Kerry Max Cook has brilliantly written his own book about life before and after death row and the scars that he still carries with him from the experience. I highly recommend this book to all. I have already bought copies for all my friends.

Kerry Max Cook met young Linda Edwards in 1977 and was invited back to her apartment for a drink, where he left his fingerprints on the sliding glass door. Four days later, Ms. Edwards was found brutally murdered, and Cook was immediately arrested for the crime. In one of the worst examples of police and prosecutorial misconduct in American history, Kerry Max was put to trial with coached prosecutorial witnesses, bunk expert testimony about the "age" (six to twelve hours) of the fingerprint, and suppressed evidence that would have favored the defense. The state declared that Kerry Max was a repressed homosexual (at a time when homosexuality was a mental illness, and in rural Texas, no less) who raped and butchered a female out of repressed rage - a theory, incredibly, they stuck to even during re-trials two decades later, in the 1990's!

Chasing Justice is the story of the framing of Kerry Max by the Texas justice system. The narrative was written in Kerry's own hand (1,200 pages at first draft) and condensed into a powerfully personal 350-page account of life on death row - desperation, abandonment, rape and sodomy, stabbings, and attempted suicide. The prose isn't depressing; rather, Kerry Max just fights on, always waiting for the next turn, building his cadre of supporters. Texas death row has been ruled in federal court to constitute cruel and unusual punishment. Kerry Max fought for a full two decades for his freedom, through three outrageous trials, with not a penny to his name. While the major Dallas newspaper was decrying the railroading of an innocent man, he was convicted again and again and again. To date, he is still not eligible for reparations from the state of Texas because he has not been officially pardoned, which would require the unanimous concurrence several bureaucratic offices unwilling to admit their culpability in the grave trespass of justice against Kerry Max Cook. (By the way, the state spent $5 - $7 million over two decades in their effort to execute Kerry Max).

The reader will question - why Kerry Max? In his book, the author does not devote his energies to answering why, rather, he uses his energy to fight. From some brief research on the case, I have determined that the real culprit hired a very expensive, well-connected good ol' boy lawyer, requiring the police to find another suspect to satisfy the anger of the community. I can only begin to wonder how the Texas justice system conspired for 20 years to keep an innocent man behind bars. During each of his three trials, judges continually approved motions by the prosecutor and denied those of the defense, even to the point at which the court had contradicted itself on which evidence should be suppressed or allowed and for what reason!

Kerry Max's remarkable story is a damning indictment of the death penalty and the Texas justice system. Right before the publication of his memoir, national crime show Body of Evidence: From the Case Files of Dayle Hinman featured forensic experts "solving" the Edwards murder based on false evidence from the prosecution. Even 10 years have Kerry Max's exoneration in the national eye, misinformation is still being spread by those in power. Kerry Max Cook's experiences should serve as clear warning not to blindly accept the word of authority.

Useful book. I'm a retired college prof; sent copies to my two teacher sons.

Let's face it: today's schools are so busy teaching political correctness, they skip over the basics, like fundamental English grammar. Even those who once learned how to parse a complex compound sentence get confused over words like "effect" and "affect." Dave Dowling's "Wrong Word Dictionary" has compiled all these annoying little buggers into a handy, concise manual that should be kept right next to the computer. Look to your laurels, Strunk & White, Dave Dowling has a book on usage that we can really use!

This is a book we all need. Anyone who writes, speaks or listens can use some help. It is amazing to me how often I hear the wrong word used on the big news channels by their newspersons. I find myself looking up words as sometimes I have found that by hearing the wrong word used over time we come to think it is the right word!

One of those books you'll find yourself reaching for all the time. I am a writer and keep it on top of work material, so I can grab it for a quick look-up. Extremely useful...

"The Wrong Word Dictionary" is a compact, handy reference book that deserves a spot on everyone's bookshelf. It provides simple, straightforward guidance on the proper usage of commonly confused words. Students, professionals or anyone who writes will benefit greatly from this owning this book. Highly recommended.

I bought about ten of these because they are so easy to carry around and are printed with easy to read type and sell at a very good price. I have many other editions of Shakespeare's plays but these are perfect for what I wanted. I have lots of other editions with introductions, evaluations, etc. and I don't really need that in my bag. These editions are a great way to read the plays without carrying around five pounds of book!

this is shakespeare's most accessible comedy. it's a farce about mistaken identities among identical twins. nothing complicated here. the play has it's funny moments. it's not the bard's best comedy; that's 'much ado about nothing', imho. but this is not a bad place to start.

Shakespeare's vision grew tremendously over the course of his writing career. However, this play demonstrates that his uncanny power as an artist grew quickly and was present in some form from the very begining. It is exceedingly hard to buy the common notion that this was his first comedy when it is so much better than "The Two Gentlemen of Verona" in nearly every way. The dialogue is fast paced and screamingly funny. The characters interesting if broad and there are some surprising touches that, aside from being interesting in and of themselves, point down the road to later, darker comedies. Chief among these is the amazing opening, perhaps still unequaled in all comedy for the level of grimness. These are the first words uttered in a play long seen as a kind of sitcom of Shakespeare's plays: "Proceed, Solinus, to procure my fall, and by the doom of death end woes and all." The speaker is Egeon, a merchant about to be put to death for simply coming from the wrong country. The whole first scene feels like a cloud is hanging over it and there is a sense of fear-infused urgency that catches the mind off guard and makes the joyous, lunatic story all the more welcome while at the same time coloring it with real drama, making it all the more exciting. To be sure, there is little real depth and much of the play is like a sitcom but only the best of sitcoms and perhaps "Monty Python" at their most absurd is a better comparison. The plot is well chosen (from the Roman comic dramatist Plautus) and well handled. For some reason the play is not well known even among the early comedies which is a shame. It is probably the best of them, even surpassing the wonderful "The Taming of the Shrew". Aside from being an easy read, keep in mind the play is good to perform as it holds up well and doesn't suffer from being tinkered with. I've seen one production that was mostly straightforward but did a few weird things that worked like magic. They would've sunk almost any other Shakespeare comedy. I must also mention the last moment between the two clowns. It is as heart-warming and humane as it is funny. The master is already present AND growing. Do yourself a favor and pick up this play, you'll laugh your head off!

I recently re-read THE COMEDY OF ERRORS prior to attending The Colorado Shakespeare Festival's performance of this farce-like play under the summer stars here in Boulder. Based on Menaechmi by Plautus, William Shakespeare (1564-1616) produced this romantic comedy between the years 1592-93 and published it in the First Folio in 1623. While on its surface this early play may seem superficial and frivolous when measured against KING LEAR or HAMLET, it is not without its own unique depths. It also shows that the Bard had a sense of humor. It tells the hilarious story of two, identical twin brothers (Antipholus of Syracuse and Antipholus of Ephesus) and their identical twin servants (both named Dromio), all of whom were separated at sea during their infancy until redisdovering each other through a series of madcap mix-ups, mayhem, and mistaken identities in the apparently insane town of Epheseus. Meanwhile, Egeon (the father of the Antipholus twins), has been granted a day to raise local ransom for illegally entering Ephesus. In that day, the separated twins are reunited, Antipholus of Ephesus pays his father's ransom, and Egeon discovers his long-lost wife (Aemilia) living in the local priory. In the end, THE COMEDY OF ERRORS is as much about the power of family as the search for completing oneself. It is a play that reminds me that it is perhaps better to re-read and understand Shakespeare than to devour one bestseller after the next.

G. Merritt

One of the problems that great artists present to us is where to begin in getting to know their works. Their masterworks are often so full of what they have spent a lifetime developing that most of it is lost on those who have not yet put in a significant amount of effort becoming familiar with that artist's style and means of expression. Yet, if one begins with their apprentice works one may become discouraged because they lack the miracles of the masterworks. So, where does one begin?

Shakespeare offers the reader an additional challenge of an English that is removed in style and idiom from us by 400 years. It is not an insurmountable challenge. In fact, it is quite easy to overcome with a bit of time reading it and getting into the flow. It just seems strange in the beginning, but it really does become easy to read once you spend some time with it. However, getting over that small hill has kept many from enjoying the glories of Shakespeare.

This play, "The Comedy of Errors", is clearly an early work. It has many virtues, but despite them it does not offer much of what we really value in Shakespeare. It is a very fine play and is constructed very well. It is a wonderful first work to read of Shakespeare because it is short and has a very simple plot. The new reader does not have to spend much effort contemplating characters or the immense subtlety of language of the great works. Its charms are direct and what it has to offer is pretty much on the surface of the words.

The plot is, like all farces, ridiculous. It involves twin brothers who are served by twin slaves. They are separated early in life and when the play opens one set does not know the other exists. One set (the Antipholus and Dromio from Syracuse) visits Ephesus where the other set (the Antipholus and Dromio of Ephesus) lives. The play involves people confusing the two sets to the bewilderment of those suffering from the confusion. It really is quite funny. Of course, eventually, all is resolved to everyone's delight.

This edition, like all of the individual editions Arden offers of these plays, has a wonderful opening essay that offers a great deal of background on the play including a discussion of its performance history, sources, and discussion of the play itself. The appendices in the back offer excerpts from the sources and some brief information on the Gray's Inn performance of 1594.

If you desire to study Shakespeare and are willing to spend time reading many of his plays, "The Comedy of Errors" is a good work to start with just to ease into the language and get a feel for some of the conventions of Elizabethan theater. Just don't stop here. Shakespeare has so much more to offer that you owe it to yourself to continue your exploration of this supreme artist.

If you want to know the truth about the medical system and the enormous number of errors and cover-ups within that system, read this book. Well-researched with many shocking and heart-breaking case studies, the book provides answers as well as showing the problems. Thank goodness someone had the courage to buck the system and break down the Wall of Silence for all of us.

This is a better book by far than the unfortunately better known INTERNAL BLEEDING. It is certainly more honest. It has the clear advantage of being written by people who know and understand the subject ,and unlike Internal Bleeding, it does not suffer the disadvantage of having been written by physicians who, purposfully or otherwise, seem very intent in obscuring the responsibility for medical mistakes.

The authors of Wall of Silence have written an honest and valuable book deciding (to the public's advantage) to let the chips fall where they may. A MUST READ!!

This book is a well researched, well written must read for all Americans. The authors share their personal story as well as the stories of others who have suffered at the hands of a careless physician. While the stories will break your heart, they may also save your life, or the life of someone you love. While none of us want to believe that those we trust with our bodies and our lives would neglect a sacred trust, the fact is it is happening all too often. This book delivers the message without hype, fear or hysteria. Read it, share it and take it with you.

What separates Wall of Silence by Gibson and Singh from other books on this topic is the refreshing and bold truth telling contained within it's human stories of pain, injustice and frustration. Not only did the authors shoulder the risks and courage requisite for listening to and then writing about the human face, consequences and devastation of needless medical error tragedies, but they also ferreted out and exposed the ugly truths, told by medical providers themselves, about how the pervasive greed, secrecy and code of silence in the healthcare industry works to bury medical mistakes through a host of means; including blackballing and burying the careers of the competent and ethical medical providers who dare to tell the truth and who place patients above profits. As a medical provider, I can find no better way to encapsulate the meaning and hope of this treatise than through those words offered by the Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter. This book is, as she states, 'A call to arms for families who have had loved ones disabled or die in the pursuit of medical treatment.' And, I can only hope that it could also catalyze a 'Call to Arms' for medical providers who wish to return medicine and healthcare to the patient oriented, compassionate, ethical and hippocratic way of practice.

If even one person dies, that is one too many. But it is not just one, not even 10 or 100 patients who are maimed and dying from health care mistakes. As Gibson and Singh reveal, the numbers are much much higher than that. And anyone of them could be you or your loved ones. Medical errors do not discriminate. Everyone is vulnerable even doctors themselves as patients.

Yes, to error is human but that really doesn't appear to be the problem here. A great deal of the problem appears to be that a percentage of health care providers make multiple errors because no one stops them. According to Grayson and Singh many nurses do not recommend their place of employment to their family and friends.

When people are not held accountable for their actions and the consequences of those actions everyone is endangered. Taking or being forced to take personal responsiblity for your actions and their consequences plays a large part in how many mistakes you make.

I would think it would be every irresponsible health care provider's nightmare to literally have to personally experience everything that they inflict on their patients.

Since health care providers are safe from the magic wishing wand, the next best thing is to guard against such mistakes and be public with the information. It is a matter of ethics. When you are ten and don't want to "rat out" a buddy it is rarely life or death. But health care providers are not ten anymore and it is their ethical obligation to put the safety their patients or potential patients first. Please read this book and tell others about it. All of our lives depend on it.

This product was in perfect shape and I received it in no time! I was very happy with this transaction!

I strongly recommend this book. I read "set phasers on stun" and thought it was very good. The author has done even better this time.

Fascinating stories on human stupidity, negligence, incompetence and lack of common sense that ends up costing people's lives. Anyone involved with Engineering, Sciences or Maintenance needs to read this book. Actually everyone should read this book to understand human failings and why no one should ever take safety for granted. Every day people die needlessly and this book details how and why.
I really commend the author for bringing these stories to print and hope that it may save some lives.

I just finished reading "The Atomic Chef" and found it difficult to put down. I simply couldn't resist finding out what unexpected consequence or turn of events was around the next corner.

This is an absolute must read if you are in any way involved with the development of new products or services. Sometimes things don't go as planned despite everyone's best efforts. Like the bumper sticker says, "stuff" happens. This book gets into the stuff to reveal what really happened. The author painstakingly researches and recounts the real story behind mismatches in people and technology.

If you like fairy tale endings this may not be the book for you. However, if you are interested in learning the true details behind real world events, I highly recommend the Atomic Chef. In contrast to more traditional Human Factors books or case studies, the Atomic Chef presents enjoyable and eminently readable accounts of actual events.

Little things can make a big difference, I'd recommend The Atomic Chef's cautionary tales to any student or professional interested in learning more about the relationship between people and technology.

This anthology of 20 brilliantly written true stories should be of special interest to anyone dealing with technology management or product development, but it also would be enjoyed by any lay reader. As a well-known expert and writer on human factors engineering and human error, Steven Casey has obviously selected these stories because each subtly educates the reader about the role of the user interface in system failure, but also because each is tremendously interesting.

Although each chapter stands solidly on its own, a few stand prominent in my own mind due to personal interests. "Rhymes and Reasons" is a beautifully written story of musician John Denver's fatal flight in a new aircraft. Although an accomplished pilot, Denver's piloting skills were no match for a confusing set of aircraft controls and displays in his just-purchased home-built plane. The story makes the clearest case possible for the importance of good user interface design and ergonomics, and like all the stories in the book this one is thoroughly researched and referenced.

In addition to aviation and aerospace settings, the stories address transportation, maritime, medical, and various everyday events in contemporary life. Particularly poignant is "Event Horizon," a disturbing accident involving a child and an MRI machine in a New York hospital. In hindsight, the reader understands the procedures and barriers that must be in place when dealing with powerful new technologies like this.

Casey throws some truly hilarious stories in the mix to break up the pattern of predictability inherent in a book on error and disaster, and this approach works well. But, overall, be forewarned: the author is skilled at putting the reader in the "pilot's seat" to experience the confusion, shock, and terror that can occur when technology and human behavior conflict. I highly recommended this book.

I have been in the finance and credit field since 1993. In this time, I have reviewed over 4,000 credit reports, and have seen hundreds of credit reports with major errors on them. Trust me, major errors on credit reports are a very common occurrence.

Denise Richardson's story is an absolute nightmare. You can read the summary of what happened elsewhere here, so I need not recap it. But her story is absolutely compelling, and frightening, and you will get angry at the following when reading the book: large bank practices; collections agencies; the three major credit bureaus, the attorneys for huge multi-billion dollar corporations; our judicial system; and our Congress and regulators who are supposed to be protecting us, but instead are protecting the large corporations who are funding their campaigns and often actually writing the consumer laws and the federal regulations.

You won't be pleased about how the credit system works in this country after reading this book, but that in my view is a good thing. With knowledge comes truth, and with truth, comes power. Once you have a much better understanding how this system works (or doesn't work) by reading Denise's story, you will know how to protect yourself from a similar fate. The nightmare of incorrect and damaging errors showing up and staying on credit reports doesn't just happen to a few individuals like Denise...it happens to tens of millions of Americans.

Denise has a number of tips on how to protect yourself from credit errors. Two important ones are: Monitor your monthly payments to all major accounts, especially your mortgage, and monitor your own credit reports on a regular basis to make sure that errors are not being reported. (A personal note - after reading this book, I contacted my mortgage bank, and will now start monitoring my mortgage payments online. We have never received a monthly mortgage payment statement either.)

I mostly read this book looking at it from a credit standpoint, because that is the field I am in. However, this is a well told and inspiring story that moved me on a human level; of one woman who took on the giants of industry, and won. The toll it took on her life was immense, but she did not give up. I have a lot of respect for her. She fought a lot of battles in this book, and did not win them all. But in the end, she won the war.

Again, I highly recommend this book. You will be moved by Denise's story, and you will also learn steps you can take to protect your own good credit.

Denise's story requires a strong stomach; I had to put it down at times just to let myself settle down after reading the nightmare she went through. This book gives you the tools to monitor your credit health and to be aware of the steps to take to maintain it. Highly recommended.

Denise's story is shaking up the credit industry. In clear, concise and honest language she tells her painfully true story of what can and does happen to honest and innocent people. I am buying copies of GIVE ME BACK MY CREDIT for all my friends...especially students being offered unsolicited credit. An excellent, compelling read.

Author Denise Richardson and I decided to exchange our literary works. I sent her my novel "The Kids on the Block," and Denise sent me hers; "Give Me Back My Credit." Even though "The Kids on the Block has some sad parts, for the most part it is humorous and hilariously funny. Denise's true story is, on the other hand, tragic, nightmarish and bloodcurdling to say the least. I do not expect Denise to have much humor left after what she went through in fighting an arrogant, error-plagued, contemptuous Mortgage Bank and the three national credit bureaus.

Denise is the Iwo Jima against corporate giant's who, not only ruined her credit, but made her life worse than a living hell.

If you are like me and feel safe and confident since your credit score is above the 700's do not be too complacent and seat on your recliner thinking all is good and well. I jumped out of my seat after reading the first two chapters!

In author Denise Richardson's book "Give Me Back My Credit" she tells how her nightmare and living hell began. She, too, thought and felt safe and confident that everything about her mortgage on the home she owned was better than best. She made it a point to make extra payments to the principal of the mortgage loan, and of course, her credit rating was excellent as well.

Years later Denise decided to refinance her home. Much to her astounding surprise, she finds out the Mortgage lender had made many dreadful, inexcusable accounting errors on her mortgage loan. The lender never credited the extra mortgage payment to the principal of the mortgage loan.

The mortgage lender had not only been misapplying those extra payments, but was using her money to their benefit. After she found out the inexcusable mistake the lender had been making for years, the mortgage lender refused to correct their accounting errors. Denise's nightmare and living hell began.

From face-to-face battles against the corporate giants to inefficient attorneys and courtroom dramas the fight to regain, restore and have the errors corrected by the Mortgage lender only compounded into a bigger nightmare. From there it spread like a cancerous disease to the three national credit bureaus of Experian, Trans Union and Equifax.
This is a story the reader will not forget. The reader will learn from it and, sadly to say, from Denise's nightmare.

I didn't think I needed to read "Give Me Back My Credit;" I was wrong! I hope the book finds its way to the halls of high school and college administrators and make the book required reading for all students.

If you feel you don't need to read her book, you, too, will be wrong.

Denise's first-person account is moving and her story is full of useful information and lists of important resources. It's unfortunate that she had to go through all of this, but she's written it down so we can learn from her experience. This book will help you understand the landscape of red tape and motivate you to cut through it.